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Towards Sustainable Mining

Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) is the Mining Association of Canada’s (MAC) commitment to responsible mining. It is a set of tools and indicators to drive performance and ensure that key mining risks are managed responsibly at our members’ facilities. Adhering to the principles of TSM, our members demonstrate leadership by:

Engaging with communities

Driving world-leading environmental practices

Committing to the safety and health of employees and surrounding communities

The program was established in 2004 and its main objective is to enable mining companies to meet society’s needs for minerals, metals and energy products in the most socially, economically and environmentally responsible way. The program’s core strengths are:

Accountability: Participation in TSM is mandatory for all MAC members. Assessments are conducted at the facility level where the mining activity takes place--the only program in the world to do this in our sector. This provides local communities with a meaningful view of how a nearby mine is faring.

Transparency: Members commit to a set of TSM Guiding Principles and report their performance against the program’s 23 indicators annually in MAC’s TSM Progress Reports. Each facility’s results are publicly available, and are externally verified every three years.

Credibility: TSM includes ongoing consultation with a national Community of Interest (COI) Advisory Panel. This multi-stakeholder group helps our members and communities of interest foster dialogue, improve the industry’s performance and shape the program for continual advancement.